The Sheathless Sword

is horse riding towards

Madïnah, he found his fists clenched. A wave of fury engulfed him. Even though the time was

left far behind, it enraged his entire self. The object of his fury was the fact that though it had

been categorically decided in the meeting that no man of Makkah would visit Madïnah for

release of his imprisoned relations, yet one of them stealthily left for Madïnah. He paid the

ransom and returned with his freed father. After this, one or the other Quraish-man would stealthily go to Madïnah and return with his freed kin. Abü Sufyän, eventually, revoked his

decision.

One of Khälids own brother, Al Walïd was a battle-prisoner with the Muslims. If the Quraish

had not got many of their prisoners released by that time, Khälid would have never thought of

going for Al Walïds release. His own brothers had compelled him to go and get his brother

released. Khälid remembered that he was not willing to let go of his ego, but then a thought

occurred to him. The thought was that the noble Prophet was also from his tribe of Quraish and

his city of Makkah and so were his followers who had become Mulims. None of them had come

down from the heavens. They were not so brave and daring as to trounce an army of 1000 with

the meagre strength of 313. From where had they got this new power that they were able to

humiliate us and fix ransoms for our men.

”I will have a look at him, ” thought Khälid. ”I will observe him carefully. ”

And he left for Madïnah in the company of his brother Hishäm. He tied a pouch containing 4000

dirhams. He was sure that the ransom for the son of Banü Makhzüms chief, Al Walïd would not

be less.

It was as he expected. When he named his brother before a Muslim who handled the affairs of

prisoners and ransoms, he demanded the payment of four thousand dirhams.

”We want some discount in the ransom, ” Khälids brother Hishäm entreated the Muslim. ”You

too are from us. Have some consideration for our old ties and relationship. ”

”Now we are not from you, ” the Muslim declared. ”We are committed to obeying Alläh and his

Prophets commands alone. ”

”Can we talk to your Prophet, ” asked Hishäm.

”Hishäm! ” raged Khälid unable to hold himself any further. ”I had decided to sacrifice my

brother for the sake of my honor but you brought me here. Now give them whatever they ask for.

I am not going to Muhammad to beg for mercy. ”

He threw the dirham-filled pouch at the Muslim and said, ”Count it and return our brother to us. ”

When the money had been counted, Walïd was presented to Khälid. The three brothers started

for Makkah there and then. On the way, the brothers asked Walïd what was the cause of their

drubbing. They had hoped that Walïd being a youth of a warrior family would tell them the

effectiveness of the Muslims military moves and their own defects in the light of his

understanding of military tactics and awareness of the art of warfare. But surprisingly, Walïd

seemed to be in an altogether different world with an out-of-place smile on his lips, as if he had

been possessed by some magic.

”Walïd! say something, ” Khälid urged him again. ”We have to take revenge for our defeat. All

the chiefs of Quraish are participating in the upcoming battle. We are also seeking the alliance of

surrounding tribes. They have even started gathering in Makkah. ” ”Bring together the entire Arab world, Khälid! ” Walïd stated, ”and yet you will be unable to

defeat the Muslims. I can say whether Muhammad has some magic in his hands or whether his

message is the truth. But there must be something, that I haven disliked them even while being

their prisoner. ”

”Then you are a traitor to your tribe, ” Hishäm berated him. ”Either you are a traitor or you have

been enchanted by their magic. That Jew priest was correct when he said that Muhammad does

not have a new belief-system or religion. He has only acquired some new magic. ”

”It was magic only, otherwise Quraish wouldn have lost at Badr, ” said Khälid.

It appeared as if Walïd was not listening. There was an inexplicable smile on his lips and he was

time and again turning his neck to look towards Madïnah. There used to be a place called Zul

Hulaifah at some distance from Madïnah. When the three brothers reached there, the night had

grown dark, so they halted there to pass the night.

When they opened their eyes in the morning, Walïd was nowhere nor was his horse. After

considerable thought, they concluded that Walïd had returned to Madïnah. They had observed

that Walïd seemed to be under some enchantment. This enchantment could be the Muslims

only. The two brothers returned Makkah empty-handed. After a few days, they received a verbal

message from Walïd that he has acknowledged Muhammad as Allähs true prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم ,and that

he has been so moved by the Prophets personality and his words that he has embraced Isläm.

Historians say that Walïd remained in high esteem with the noble Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and he earned

platitudes for his piety as well as his bravery in battles against Disbelievers.

۞۞۞

Wahshï promises to kill Hamzah ُنهْعَ

َر ِض َي هللاُ

Khälid had felt a pang of extreme fury on the occasion. On one hand his brother had gone and on

the other he had lost 4000 dirhams. As bloody hostility had broken out between Quraish and

Muslims, the latter did not return the money. There was another reason as well for non-return of

the ransom money. Walïd had informed the noble Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم that Quraish were preparing in full

swing for a decisive battle against Muslims. And for this purpose, they had already collected

innumerable dinärs and dirhams.

Khälid was trotting on towards Madïnah. A raised hump appeared at the horizon. Khälid knew

what it was. It was Mount Uhud lying 4 miles north of Madïnah. At that time, Khälid was

traveling on a very long and a little high sand-hill.

”Uhud … Uhud ” – a whisper originated from Khälids lips and he was now hearing his own

battle-cries. ”I am Abü Sulaimän … I am Abü Sulaimän ” – and with this he found the cries of a

bloody battle, the hoof-sounds of warhorses, and the clanking of clashing swords piercing his

ears. Khälid had been eager to fight this battle and he had fought it at last.

Khälids memory kept backtracking.

It had happened a mere four years back. In March 625 (Shawwäl 3 AH), the army that Quraish

had summoned to attack Madïnah was gathered in Makkah. Its strength was 3000: 700 were

armored, 200 were horse-riders and provisions and battle-supplies were laden on 3000 camels.

The army was ready to march.

Like a day old incident, Khälid remembered how delighted he had been on seeing the mighty

troop. The time for quenching the fire of revenge had come. The commander-in-chief of this

army was Abü Sufyän, and Khälid commanded a wing of this army. His sister was also going

with this troop. In addition, 14 other women were ready to travel with the army, the most

prominent of whom was Abü Sufyäns wife, Hind. Amr bin Al Äss and Ikrimah bin Abü Jahls

wives were also there. The others were singer and musician women. There was poignance in

each ones voice when they sang playing drums and tambourines. The job of these women was

to rouse the morale of the soldiers by singing passionate and emotional songs. They were to keep

reminding the warriors of those killed in the Battle of Badr.

An Ethiopian named Wahshï appeared in Khälids memories. He was the slave of a Quraish

chieftain Jubair bin Mutim. He was tall, dark-skinned and sturdy of build. He was reputed in the

skill of lance-throwing. He had a made-in-Africa spear. His original African name was

something else. Jubair had named him Wahshï (meaning wild) after observing his fighting

prowess.

”Ibn Harb! ” a short while before the march, Jubair bin Mutim talked to him, ”I have to avenge

the blood of my uncle. Maybe, I do not get a chance. My uncle was killed by Muhammads uncle

Hamzah in the Battle of Badr. So, if you succeed in killing Hamzah, I will free you. ”

”Hamzah will die by my lance, master, ” Wahshï bin Harb said with confidence.

This Ethiopian slave strolled towards the place where the women accompanying the army had

just ridden their camels.

”Abü Dusmah! ” a woman called him.

It was Wahshïs another name. He stopped. Abü Sufyäns wife Hind was calling him. He went

close to her.

”Abü Dusmah! ” said Hind, ”Don be surprised. I have called you. My breast is burning with the

flames of revenge. Cool my breast. ”

”At your service, lady, ” the slave replied obediently, ”I will sacrifice my life at the order of our

commanders wife. ”

”In the Battle of Badr, Hamzah killed my father, ” Hind said in a sad voice, ”You can recognize

him well, can you? Look, all the gold jewels I am wearing will be yours if you kill Hamzah. ”

There was smile on his face as he looked at Hinds ornaments. And in an undertone filled with

resolve, he said, ”I alone will kill Hamzah. ” Khälid remembered the setting off of his army. The army had traveled to Madïnah through this

very route. He had climbed a high point to have a look at his army. His chest had swelled with

pride. He felt a tinge of pity for the Muslims of Madïnah. But this pity too had cheered him. It

was an enmity of blood. It was a question of his honour. Crushing the Muslims was now his

determination.

۞۞۞

Betrayal of the Hypocrites

Many days after the Battle of Uhud, Khälid came to know that when Quraish was summoning

the army at Makkah, the information had reached the holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم .And when the army was

on its way to Madïnah, the holy Prophet had the latest news about its march-speed, halts and

distance from Madïnah. The news of the troops departure from Madïnah had been sent to the

Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم by Hazrat Abbäs (May Alläh be pleased with him).

This army of Quraish had camped at a place near Madïnah which had greenery as well as water.

Khälid was unaware that two Muslim spies had observed the entire strength of the army and had

informed Allähs Prophet of every detail.

On 21 March 625, the noble Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم ordered his troop to march. The troop camped at the foot

of a hill named Shaikhain. It was a 1000-strong infantry in which only a hundred had helmets on

their heads. There were only two horses with the Mujähids, one of which was with the noble

.صلى الله عليه وسلم Prophet

It was the first occasion when the hypocrisy of some pseudo-Muslims came to the fore, leaving

the Muslims in great danger. This was equivalent to treachery. They were some people of

Madïnah who had embraced Isläm as public posture, but their hearts were not Muslims. The

celebrated Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم had named them Hypocrites. It was very difficult to tell a true Muslim from

a Hypocrite in those days. When the Muslim Mujähids started marching from Madïnah towards

the Shaikhain hill, Abdulläh bin Ubai, an influential leader of Madïnah, entered into a discussion

with Allähs prophet. He averred that the Quraish army was threefold in strength, and therefore,

going out of Madïnah to fight them in the open would be disastrous.

When the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم sought opinions from other chiefs of Mujähids, the majority preferred going

out of Madïnah and challenging the enemy in the open. The Prophets opinion was same as that

of Abdulläh bin Ubai, but he decided on the basis of the majority view and ordered the army to

march. Abdulläh bin Ubai refused to go out for battle. No sooner had he turned his back than

300 men from the Mujähid troop separated from the army. It then came to light that all of them

were Hypocrites and Abdulläh bin Ubai was their chief.

Now there were only 700 Mujähids against 3000 men of Quraish. But Allähs Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم did not

lose heart and marched off with the remaining 700. He arranged the Mujähids in battle-array at

the foot of Shaikhain hill in the Uhud mountain range. Khälid climbed a high hill to view the

Muslim line-up, then he informed his commander Abü Sufyän and fixed the position of his

division in consultation with him

The holy Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم spread the Mujähids in a length of about 1000 yards. Behind them lay a

valley, on one side was a range of hills, but on the other side, there was no defense. The holy

Prophet stationed 50 archers at a nearby hillock on this side under the command of Abdulläh bin

َر ِض َي للاه َعْنهه Jubair

.

”Understand your responsibility, Abdulläh! ” Allähs Prophet had instructed him, keep watch on

the back. The enemy may make a move in our back which will be highly dangerous for us. The

enemys cavalry is quite strong. They may use them to attack from our back. So, keep your

archers focused on the enemy horsemen. I have no fear from the footsoldiers. ”

Nearly all authoritative historians, in particular, Ibn Hishäm and Wäqdï, write that the noble

Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم had clearly stated to Abdulläh bin Jubair, ”Our back will be safe only by your

watchfulness and readiness. A little slip on your part may cause us humiliating defeat.

Remember Abdulläh, even if you see the enemy fleeing and us being victorious, don leave

your position. If you see that the enemy is pressing us from all sides and that you must come to

help us, even then don leave your position. This hillock should never go under the enemy

control. This hillock is yours. You are the ruler of all the underlying surroundings in the reach of

your archers arrows. ”

Khälid observed the Muslim line-up and told Abü Sufyän that Muslims would not fight the battle

of open-field. Proud of his strong army, Abü Sufyän wanted the battle to take place in the open,

with unbounded fronts. This would enable him to crush the Mujähids with the large number of

his cavaliers and footmen.

Khälids father had started training him in battle-maneuvers from childhood itself. This included

taking the enemy unawares by suddenly attacking them from a side or back, moving round the

enemy and then carrying out a surprise raid, dividing the army and keeping complete control

over the divisions, and so on. So, when Khälid saw the line-up of Mujähids with the eye of an

experienced tactician, he felt that Muslims may display their skill in the art of warfare.

Abü Sufyän ordered his army to march to the Muslims. He sent the cavaliers to attack the sides

of the Muslim army. One side was assigned to Khälids division, and the other to Ikrimahs.

Each of them had a hundred horsemen under his command. The commander of the entire cavalry

was Amr bin Al Äs. Abü Sufyän placed a hundred archers in front of the infantry. The flag of

Quraish was in Talhah bin Abü Talhahs hands. In the battles of those days, the flag had the

status of the heart. If the flag fell, the soldiers would lose heart and chaos would follow in the

army.

۞۞۞

Abü Ämir Fäsiq

Starting the battle from the Quraishs side, a soldier Abü Ämir Fäsiq came out of their row and

reached close to the Mujähids. Behind him there were some slaves. He was an inhabitant of

Madïnah, and one of the chieftains of the Aus tribe. When the noble Prophet migrated from

Makkah to Madïnah, Abü Ämir Fäsiq took a vow that he would not rest till he expelled Allähs Prophet and all the Muslims from Madïnah. He was enchanted by a very pretty Jew girl as also

by their wealth. The anti-Isläm activities of the Jews used to be underground in those days.

Publicly, they had entered into an agreement of friendship and loyalty with the Muslims. Abü

Ämir was like a puppet in their hands, whom they had decided to ally with the Quraish.

So, when the Mujähids marched out of Madïnah to fight the Quraish, Abü Ämir switched over

to the Quraish side. Many men of his Aus tribe had embraced Isläm sincerely at the hands of the

holy Prophet, and they were lined up against the Quraish. Abü Ämir came forward and

addressed the Mujähids in a loud voice. The noble Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم had nicknamed him Fäsiq (habitual

sinner).

”Chivalrous bravehearts of the Aus tribe! ” Abü Ämir called out, ”You certainly know me, who I

am. Listen carefully to what I say and … ”

Abü Ämir hadn completed his address when a Mujähid of the Aus tribe roared from the

Muslim rows, ”O Fäsiq, O sinner, O pervert, we cast our spit on your name. ”

The scene was playing in Khälids mind. A torrent of stones started falling on Abü Ämir and the

slaves behind him. Historians say that the stone-throwers were Mujähids of Aus. Abü Amir and

the slaves who were in the range of the stones fled back after getting hurt by a few stones.

The Jews were sitting at Madïnah eagerly waiting for the news of the battle. The Jew girl who

had captivated Abü Ämir was keenly waiting for the news of her success. She did not know at

the time that Muslims had stoned away the enchantment of her gorgeous youth. (In the coming

chapters, you will be told in detail of the underground activities of Jew and Quraish women.)

Before this incident involving Abü Ämir Fäsiq, the women with the Quraish army were standing

in the midst of the troop and singing melodious songs. They reminded the listeners of the

Quraish men killed in the Battle of Badr in such words and tone that made the listeners bloods

boil and caused their hairs to stand up. A few of these women had also heated the bloods of the

soldiers with fiery speeches.

When the women were ordered to go back, Abü Sufyäns wife Hind rode a horse and started

singing a song. Her voice was loud and emotional. Historians have been unable to preserve all

the verses of her song. They have written that the song was obscene depicting the behind-the-

veils relationship of husband and wife. The verses which are there in the history books are as

follows. The Abdud Där mentioned in these verses refers to the clan of Banü Abdud Där which

was a branch of Banü Umayyah, a sub-tribe of Quraish. Banü Abdud Där was a highly esteemed

clan of Quraish.

Worthy sons of Abdud Där!

Watchmen of our houses and hearths!

We are the daughters of night and dark.

We play between pillows and cushions

Which arouses joys and jubilations.

If you march upon the enemy, well pull you to our hearts,

But if you flee, we will from you keep apart.

۞۞۞

The Commander-in-Chief comes to duel

After this, there was stone-throwing by the Mujähids upon Abü Ämir Fäsiq. Immediately

following this, Quraish started shooting arrows at the Mujähids. Mujähids too rained arrows in

reply. Khälid made a swift move with his 100 horsemen to attack the Muslim side close to him.

He did not know that archers were lying in hiding on a hillock waiting for them. Kahlids

horsemen were galloping forward unhesitatingly on a slightly narrow path which made them

break their formation.

After much thought, Khälid had brought his division to this area. Based on his fathers training,

he was confidently hopeful that his sudden attack would force the Muslims to either flee or fight

with broken lineup, in which case, they would be crushed under the feet of Quraishs horses. But

when his horsemen were still at some distance from the Muslim army side, a torrent of arrows

fell upon his cavaliers from above. His frontline horsemen were now neither in a position to

march ahead nor to turn back. One by one, the horsemen fell after sustaining several arrows. The

horses injured by the arrows wreaked havoc upon Khälids horsemen. The cavaliers at the back

turned around their horses and fled.

On the other side, the women of Quraish started singing the same song in tune with the beats of

drums and tambourines which Hind had earlier sung alone. ”Worthy sons of Abdud Där! We are

the daughters of night and dark. We play between pillows … ”

Historian Wäqdï reports that in accordance with the battle-traditions of those days, the time came

for one-to-one duel. First of all, the flag-bearer of Quraish, Talhah bin Abü Talhah marched

ahead and challenged the Mujähids of Isläm to send someone to duel with him.

”Come forward, O enemy of my religion! ” Like a wave of swift breeze, Hazrat Alï rushed

forward and replied to the challenger, ”Im here to duel with you. ”

Bearing his tribes flag and waving his sword, Talhah came forward fiercely, but his sword-

attack did nothing but tear away at the air. He was regaining his balance, when Hazrat Alïs

sword inflicted upon him a wound so severe that first, his flag fell and then he himself followed.

A man of Quraish ran forward, lifted up the flag and went back with it. Hazrat Alï could have

felled him too, but this was against the duel-tradition.

When they had taken Talhah out of the battle-front, another man from his clan came forward.

”Im duty-bound to avenge, ” he came to the front challenging, ”Come, Alï! See the slash of my

sword. ”

Hazrat Alï confronted him silently. Both moved in one round circle maintaining their eye-

contact, then their swords and shields clashed. After that, everybody saw that blood was dripping

off Hazrat Alïs sword and his challenger was shuddering on the ground.

Many soldiers of Quraish came forward with the challenge one after another, and continued

getting killed.

The commander-in-chief of Quraish, Abü Sufyän was beside himself in anger when he saw his

men dying in continuum. According to the battle traditions, he being the commander should not

have come forward for duel. His death would have led to chaos in his army. But he could not

hold himself back. He was riding a horse. He spurred his horse and came to the front challenging

the Muslims.

When his wife Hind saw him going forward, she rode her camel, came to the front and started

singing in a loud voice the song which also included the verse: ”… if you flee, we will from you

keep apart. ”

Abü Sufyän was riding a horse but the Muslim who came forward in response to his challenge

was on foot. History remembers him as Hanzalah bin Abü Ämir للاه ي َض ِرَ

نههْع . َAbü Sufyän had a

spear in his hand. Nobody expected the sword-wielding foot-soldier to escape alive from the

spear-brandishing horseman. Abü Sufyäns horse rushed towards Hanzalah. Abü Sufyän

positioned his spear, aimed at Hanzalah and then struck him. But Hanzalah showed agility and

moved to a side.

This was repeated thrice. On the last occasion, when Abü Sufyäns horse rushed ahead, Hanzalah

chased after it. The horse halted and turned back but Hanzalah had reached it by that time. Abü

Sufyän did not see him. Hanzalah struck the horses forelegs so hard that it fell down. Abü

Sufyän fell on the other side. Hanzalah came forward to attack him, but Abü Sufyän kept running

round the horse to save himself. And he called out to Quraish for help.

A foot-soldier of Quraish came running. Muslims were in the false belief that this man had come

to take away Abü Sufyän, but he violated the battle-law. He attacked Hanzalah from behind and

martyred him. Abü Sufyän fled towards his army line-up.

For the last round of duel, Abdur Rahmän bin Abü Bakr came from the Quraish side. Historian

Wäqdï reports that on hearing Abdur Rahmäns challenge, his father Abü Bakr who was one of

the first to embrace Isläm and was in the company of Allähs Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم ,pulled out his sword

and came forward to duel with his young son.

”Come forward, O Disbeliever son of Muslim father! ” Abü Bakr نههْع َللاه ي َض ِر َresponded to his

challenge.

When the noble Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم saw the father and son face-to-face, he ran forward and stopped Abü

Bakr. ”Put back your sword in the sheath, Abü Bakr, ” the noble Prophet said and took him back.

Hamzah

martyred رَضِيَ هللاُ

Even now Khälid could hear the shouts and cries of the battle. His eyes had preserved the scenes

beneath their lids. As soon as the duels ended, Quraish charged against the Muslims. The noble

Prophet had the Uhud mountains behind him, so Muslims had no fear of attack from behind. The

head-to-head confrontation was ferocious. Though the strength of the Muslims was quite less,

they compensated it with their zeal and skilful swordsmanship. If the Quraish army did not have

overwhelming numbers, they would not have stood their ground fighting the Muslims. They

were fighting merely on strength of their numbers.

Khälids watchful eyes lay in wait for the noble Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم ,who was on a side. This was the side

upon which Khälid had to attack. This time, Khälid ordered his horsemen to charge their horses

and pass ahead of the narrow path, then attack the side of the Muslim army. But Abdulläh bin

Jubairs 50 archers forced them to flee which they did leaving behind some horses and horsemen

groaning in wounds.

The battle was at its peak. There was only one man who was not fighting. Wielding his lance, he

was moving about in the battle-field as if searching for someone. He was Wahshï bin Harb. He

َر ِض َي للاه َعْنهه Hamzah for looking was

. He had been promised two prizes for killing Hamzah: one,

his master would free him, and two, he would get all the ornaments of Abü Sufyäns wife Hind

which she was wearing at the time.

َر ِض َي للاه َعْنهه Hamzah of sight caught He

. He was charging towards a Quraish man, Sibä bin Abdul

Uzzä. It was a tradition in Arab that women circumcised the children. According to historian

Ibn Hishäm, the tradition of circumcision was prevalent among the Arabs even before the advent

of Isläm. The mother of Sibä whom Hamzah had challenged used to circumcise children.

”O son of circumcising woman! ” challenged Hamzah, ”Come here and look at me for the last

time. ”

Sibä bin Abdul Uzzä rushed towards Hamzah. His face was red in anger. He was an expert in

the battle of sword and shield. Hamzah too was in no way inferior. Both came close to each other

and started attacking. The shields of both were obstructing the attack. They were changing their

positions and attacking but shields would come in the way of the swords.

At that time, Wahshï bin Harb with his head leaning down, was approaching Hamzah slowly. He

was out of sight because of the landscape and the bushes. Hamzah was gazing in the eyes of his

enemy, unable to see anyone other than Sibä.

Wahshï came close to him. He was skilled in throwing lance at an aim. He came so close that his

lance could not miss the goal. He straightened himself, balanced the lance in his hand and

brought it in a position to strike. Hamzah struck Sibä twice or thrice in succession. The last

strike was such that Hamzahs sword pierced into Sibäs stomach. When Hamzah pulled out his

sword, his stomach opened up further. He fell down at Hamzahs feet. Hamzah had merely regained his balance when Wahshï threw his lance at him with full force.

The distance was very small. The lance pierced into Hamzahs stomach so deep that its blade

came out of his back. Hamzah did not fall.

He looked around and found out Wahshï. With the lance in his body, Hamzah moved towards

Wahshï. Wahshï remained where he was. But Hamzah fell after staggering for four to five steps.

Wahshï watched his body shaking. When the bodys motion had stopped, he came near. Hamzah

was martyred. Wahshï pulled out the lance from his body and went away. Now he was searching

for Hind and his master Jubair bin Mutim.

Quraish flees from the Uhud battle-

field

The battle kept flashing in Khälids mind and a kind of weight seemed to bear down his heart.

His horse was trotting ahead. He was passing on a low-lying path, so the peak of Uhud

disappeared from his view. He remembered the women of his tribe who were rousing Quraish

and the allied tribes. Khälid remembered that he had climbed a hillock to view the battle. He saw

Muslim women too. They took charge of the wounded fighters whom Muslim men brought

behind from the front. They would apply bandage and balm and give them water to drink. There

were 14 women with Muslims. Hazrat Fätimah هَ

َر ِض َي للاه َعْن

ا was one of them.

Then astonishingly, the few-in-number Muslims had defeated the outnumbering Quraish. The

flag-bearer of Quraish fell down. Someone else lifted it up. He too fell. The flag fell several

times. In the end, a slave hoisted it up. But when he too got killed, the Muslims did not let

Quraish hoist the flag again. Quraish had lost spirit.

Khälid saw their flight. He also saw that Muslims were chasing after them. Quraish did not even

halt at their camps. They left their goods and belongings and fled in chaos. From here the post-

battle phase started. In the delight of victory and with the purpose of revenge, Muslims started

taking into their possession the Quraishs camps and their contents. They were crying out

slogans of victory and triumph. Quraish had fled in such fear that they had forgotten their women

too. They were fleeing on foot, but the Muslims did not even let their gazes fall upon them.

One of the divisions of the Quraish cavalry was commanded by Ikrimah, and the other by

Khälid. They had to attack the sides of the Muslim army. But the dice of battle had turned

irreparably for the worst. Ikrimah and Khälid, however, kept their horsemen where they had

been stationed during the battle. Even in this condition, Khälid hoped that he would be able to

turn the defeat into victory. But the path which he had to pass through was protected by Muslim

archers in battle-readiness.

These Muslim archers saw from their vantage position that Quraish had fled and their Muslim

friends were capturing the belongings left behind by Quraish. They too started leaving their

positions to gather the battle-spoils. Their commander Abdulläh bin Jubair warned them not to disobey the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم .He reminded them that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم had told them that nobody should

leave his position here without his permission.

”The battle is over, ” shouting this, the archers started descending from their hillock. ”Battle-

spoils, battle-spoils … We are victorious. ”

Only nine archers were left with the commander Abdulläh bin Jubair.

To Khälid this scene seemed like a dream. This was what he wished for. He kept looking at the

archers. When they had reached the Quraish camps, Khälid attacked the hillock (Ainain) where

Abdulläh bin Jubair was left with his nine steadfast archers. Khälid could have overlooked them,

but he wanted to take revenge from them. His horsemen were steadily climbing up the hillock.

From top, the archers were swiftly shooting arrows.

When Ikrimah saw Khälid charging towards Ainain, he too brought his division here. His

horsemen began to climb from every side. The horsemen also had bows and arrows and they

were shooting up. It was not possible for Abdulläh bin Jubair and his men to stop the cavaliers in

such large numbers. The horsemen reached the top. The archers then engaged in hand-to-hand

fight, but all of them got wounded and fell. Khälid threw the wounded down the hillock.

Abdulläh bin Jubair too was among the martyrs.

From there Khälid and Ikrimah brought down their cavaliers and reached the place from where

the Muslims had started the battle. On Khälids command, both of them at once attacked the

Muslims. The Muslims were not in a position to fight. However, the noble Prophet had a small

division of Mujähids with him. These Mujähids stood their grounds against the cavaliers.

The women who had come with Quraish had fled. But one of them, Amrah, had hidden

somewhere in the vicinity. When she saw Quraish horsemen attacking the Muslims, she

discovered the Quraish flag lying on the ground. She raised the flag and hoisted it.

Abü Sufyän had regained control of his fleeing foot-soldiers. When he looked around, he found

the Quraish flag waving up in the air. He shouted out the slogans of ”Long live Hubal! ” and

”Long live Uzzä! ” He then brought the foot-soldiers back and encircled the Muslims.

The battle-scenes flashed in Khälids mind. He was searching for the noble Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم – ,and

today, four years later he was going to Madïnah, his heart and mind overcome by the holy prophet

.صلى الله عليه وسلم